Do you want to live forever?
The cynical statement of one about to die,
Or the practical thoughts of a forebearer,
Or ‘Dulce Decorum Est’ that little lie.

In my mind’s eye, I see life
Everlasting, a population bursting
And all the great crimes are rife;
While once great civilizations lie, hurting.

Forever, stretches to and from infinity;
Time is but a meaningless equation,
Buried deeply and definitely
In the mathematics of persuasion.

This idea over that and these for this one,
Multiple dimensions all diminished;
The rivers of life are all, softly – won;
All is vanity, races’ veinly finished.

Barely asking the sanguinary lesson
That we, each, must learn
Or become outcast and a felon,
In bloody battle, memories return.

How many wars must we fight?
How many more must we kill?
Is war just political delight?
Some plausibly deniable thrill?

I hear the sergeant’s voice from the doorway,
“Go, go, go, do you want to live forever?”
Forever is a land, which is far, far away
Where families, wives and friends live together.